Greenstone is sponsoring X Supply Chains in London this Thursday (7th June).

This event, organised by The Crowd, will bring together 120+ supply chain, sustainability, sourcing, procurement and ethical trade professionals to explore how to apply disruptive thinking and solutions to next-generation sustainable supply chains.

Greenstone has partnered with specialist consulting firm Ardea International to further enable its clients to achieve compliant, transparent and responsible supply chains.

There is an ever-increasing focus on global supply chains, with organisations needing to take increased responsibility for whom they work with, and for understanding how their suppliers operate. Human rights is an issue that is very much driving this discussion, with rights and conditions of workers a topic Governments across the world are trying to address, increasingly through new legislation.

Greenstone has partnered with specialist consulting firm Ardea International and UN Global Compact Network UK to host a webinar on human rights in the supply chain on Wednesday 31st January at 3.30pm GMT.

There is an ever-increasing focus on global supply chains, with organisations themselves needing to take increased responsibility for whom they work with, and for understanding how their suppliers operate. Human rights is an issue that is very much driving this discussion, with rights and conditions of workers a topic Governments across the world are trying to address.

For many organisations the supply chain is becoming an increasing area of focus, and this is not just because of the increasing risks posed by more global and complex supply chains, but also due to the opportunities presented.

In recent years there has been increased scrutiny placed upon those organisations whose supply chains contain sub-standard suppliers, producers or factories. Whereas previously issues with working conditions, for example, may have been directed at employers or owners, the new norm is that those at the top of the supply chain should be exerting a more positive influence.

Clif Bar & Company has received a prestigious award in Supply Chain Leadership from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

The award recognizes organizations that demonstrate leadership in managing and reducing greenhouse gas emissions in internal operations and throughout the supply chain, as well as integrating climate resilience into their operating strategies.

Greenstone is updating its SupplierPortal software to make it even easier for clients to manage their suppliers. We have listened to client feedback and seen the increasing need for all-encompassing supplier management processes and software.

The result is the introduction of more ‘Buyer’ (client) functionality, which will ensure that all suppliers and contracts can be managed in one place, and a risk-based approach can be applied to the gathering and analysis of specific supplier information.

Earlier this year, Greenstone conducted extensive research to understand how companies are identifying and mitigating supply chain risk.

The survey asked 1000 senior decision makers about their perception of supply chain risk. It found that increasing global focus and the impact of regulation has resulted in a growing business requirement for supplier due diligence processes.

The results will now be shared during a complimentary online webinar. The webinar will be held on two dates at the start of November, and will explore how companies are reacting to the increased scrutiny placed on their third party relationships. It will also highlight the five key steps organisations can take now to successfully address supply chain risk and ensure supplier compliance.

Considering supply chains are responsible for up to four times the greenhouse gas emissions of a company’s direct operations and many suppliers operate in water-stressed areas of the globe, this makes sense from an environmental savings standpoint.

To this end, we’ve seen major corporations like Apple push for more rigorous environmental standards and renewable energy use across its supply chain — and publish regular supply chain audit reports detailing suppliers’ progress — and Nike creating an entirely new apparel supply chain company that will “embed sustainability and transparency into the business.”

In the current non-financial reporting landscape there is a heightened focus on understanding your supply chain. As a result, organisations are increasingly evaluating the performance of their suppliers against a wide spectrum of non-financial criteria and monitoring the associated risks.

In order to better understand what is driving this behaviour and how companies are identifying and mitigating supply chain risk, Greenstone conducted the State of Supplier Management 2016 survey.